Inquiry: Fall 2011 e-newsletter

HELEN WAY KLINGLER COLLEGE
OF ARTS & SCIENCES

Message from the dean

This fall, in addition to greeting more than 700 first-year students from Marquette's class of 2015, the Klingler College of Arts and Sciences proudly welcomed Marquette's new president, Rev. Scott R. Pilarz, S.J., to the Department of English. The department will serve as his academic "home," as he plans to teach an undergraduate course on 16th century Renaissance literature in spring 2012.

Father Pilarz, after consulting with Provost John J. Pauly and college faculty members, has also asked that I serve as the interim dean through the 2012-13 academic year. The next 18 months will be used to identify the needs of the college and to create conditions that will make the work of a new dean more effective.

As the stories below demonstrate, the students, faculty and alumni of the college continue to put the skills of engaged, imaginative inquiry into practice to serve the local, national and international community. Please feel free to send me your own story or feedback for future issues of Inquiry.

Noted novelist turned professor impressed with students

Larry Watson is an acclaimed author who joined the Department of English faculty in 2003. Best known for his novel, Montana 1948, Watson published American Boy this fall. During a recent interview, Watson said, "I am astounded at how good the writing is in my writing classes ... I think we could have published an anthology of the stories the students wrote during that class."

Focused on green

A number of faculty and classes in the college address the world's environmental and sustainability issues. New this spring, the Department of Social and Cultural Sciences will offer a new class, Food, Water and Society, which will explore the social meaning and national security issues of food and water. This past summer, Jame Schaefer, associate professor of theology, published Confronting the Climate Crisis: Catholic Theological Perspectives, and McGee Young, assistant professor of political science, launched H2OScore, a website to help households measure water usage and learn how to conserve water. The college also offers an interdisciplinary minor in environmental ethics with courses offered from departments throughout the college and university.

Alumni vie to be Phoenix mayor

Half of the six candidates who campaigned to be the next mayor of Phoenix, were Marquette alumni. The group included Greg Stanton, Arts '92, who advanced in the primary and will face Wes Gullett in the Nov. 8 election.

Miles from ordinary

Ben Stewart, Arts '09, and Spencer McCormick, son of Marquette professor Barrett McCormick, biked more than 4,000 miles through 11 African nations to raise money for Doctors Without Borders and the World Bicycle Relief.

Elephant toothpaste

Chemistry is not all about the periodic table and lab coats. Okay, the periodic table is pretty essential, but chemistry can be a lot of fun too. Scott Reid, chair and professor of chemistry, demonstrated a rapid decomposition of hydrogen peroxide, also known as the "elephant toothpaste experiment," on a Milwaukee morning news show.

Volunteering around the globe

Since 1991 the Marquette University Alumni Association has recognized a junior who emulates the values and ideals of Rev. Pedro Arrupe, S.J., the superior general of the Society of Jesus from 1965 to 1981. The latest recipient is Emily Hoffmann, an international affairs and pre-law student. Hoffmann was recognized for her commitment to leadership and service, which has spanned the globe — from Milwaukee to Ghana, and from Washington D.C. to El Salvador. Through her studies and commitment to service, Hoffman continues to demonstrate why she is also the recipient of an Ignatius Scholarship for Excellence and an Arts and Sciences scholarship for academic achievement and excellence.

Snapshots of a semester in China

Angela Sorby, associate professor of English, spent the spring 2011 semester teaching at a university in China on a Fulbright fellowship. She shared four "snapshots" of what she learned from her experience with the Chronicle of Higher Education.

Sesquicentennial of the Civil War

A Marquette professor is joining in the commemoration of the 150-year anniversary of the Civil War. Jim Marten, chair and professor of history and a noted Civil War expert, recently authored Sing Not War: The Lives of Union & Confederate Veterans in Gilded Age America. The book examines the lives of Civil War vets and the difficulties they had blending back into society. Marten talked about the book on "Lake Effect," a Milwaukee radio program on the local NPR affiliate.

The equation of teaching algebra

Marquette professors, with colleagues from the University of Delaware and Widener University, are analyzing the effectiveness of two different algebra math curricula. The goal of the research is to determine the advantages or weaknesses of a newer, more opened-ended approaches to teaching algebra. Led at Marquette by John Moyer, professor of mathematics, the project has followed more than 1,400 middle school students in Milwaukee since 2006. The longitudinal research is supported with more than $4 million in grants from the National Science Foundation.